An array of basic first foods — from bananas to sweet potatoes — caused her six-month old Annika to vomit uncontrollably
That was me, except for bananas and rice cereal, the ONLY two foods I could eat until I was a toddler. There were no such things as stool tests then, and I guess I didn't get to my aunt's and uncle's farms enough. My great mom did, however, find a doc that did essentially elimination diet work with me, which did work. My gut was still not right though, still isn't, and that is probably the base layer of my issues. Life long nutrient malabsorption = life long malnutrition, the evidence of which is plain to see, but has ANY doctor ever said anything? No. I figured it out with a lot of reading and testing. A recent stool test was quite revealing.
There are other layers in my case too, a congenital heart defect (that was repaired to save my life), genetic defects in metals handling (carrier for hemochromatosis and Wilson's - found at request of my testing), and the yet undiscovered trigger to what was eventually a CFS diagnosis, although I still am not totally sure about that.
Despite my life long history of heart issues, my latest testing seems to have found something that the cardiologist missed (didn't look for) that may be central to my steep decline in the last year
Extensive calcification along the left inferior ventricle.
That was part of the report from a chest CT I requested to look for a possible thymoma, the only thing left I could think of that could cause the weakness I feel in my heart on exertion, and it was a hail-Mary shot, but my great primary found a way to order it, and there was the unexpected finding. I've had an recent angiogram, which pronounced me clear (which the CT did too, from a atherosclerosis perspective). We'll see what my cardiologist has to say about this, but I can't wait for that pronouncement. I researched and started my own treatment (basically lots of Vitamin K2, and IP-6). Two weeks in, my Garmin says I'm doing better -- the graphs improved the day after I started my treatment, but I don't
feel better yet. We'll see. Maybe much ado about nothing. I don't think so, though.
I would have none of these answers had I not been the one pushing for them, and these things can cost people their lives -- it's not trivial. The thing that has astonished me is the lack of urgency at all levels. Coupled with the lack of curiosity mentioned earlier, I would encourage anyone to go their own way.